Toyota’s e-Palette is a futuristic store on wheels

The company that brought us the Prius unveiled a new take on the mobility concept at CES.

Toyota announced the e-Palette, an electric, self-driving vehicle that’s meant to open up opportunities for businesses to create on-demand services. It also hopes to “blur the lines between brick and mortar and online commerce.”

Company president Akio Toyoda introduced the e-Palette on stage, which he says is “an open, flexible platform easily adapted to suit a range of uses, including ride-sharing, delivery, and retail.”

He added: “Today you have to travel to the store. In the future, the store will travel to you.”

The e-Palette concept features an open interior design layout, allowing the vehicle to be outfitted with purpose-built interiors depending on the user’s needs. Toyota also envisions the e-Palette will be made available in three sizes.

Toyota will debut a model e-Palette at the 2020 Olympics, where it is a sponsor. It has already inked partnerships with Amazon, Pizza Hut, and Uber, among others.

Photo courtesy of PRNewsfoto/Toyota Motor North America

“Our competitors no longer just make cars. Companies like Google, Apple, and even Facebook are what I think about at night, because, after all, we didn’t start off making cars either,” Toyoda said.